Phantom island

A phantom island is an island that was thought to exist at some point in time. Because of this, the island was shown on a map. Later, the islands were removed from maps. Some islands are described and later on change their name, or with the description given it is possible to associate a real island. Other islands sink below sea level because of natural causes such as erosion. Such islands still exist. Two examples are Earnest Legouve Reef and Maria-Theresa Reef in the South Pacific. Because they are far away from ships' routes, their existence can not be proved so far. In the year 1908, Robert Peary claimed to have found a lost continent, called Crocker Land.

People such as João Vaz Corte-Real were rewarded for finding islands that turned out to be phantom islands. In the case given, the phantom island was Bacalao. The island showed up on maps in the early 16th century. Baccalieu Island is probably named after the phantom island.